Euro area annual inflation is expected to be -0.6% in January 2015, down from -0.2% in December 20143,
according to a flash estimate4 from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.
This negative rate for euro area annual inflation in January is driven by the fall in energy prices (-8.9%, compared
with -6.3% in December). Prices are also expected to fall for food, alcohol & tobacco (-0.1%, compared with 0.0%
in December) and non-energy industrial goods (-0.1%, compared with 0.0% in December). Only prices for services
are expected to increase (1.0%, compared with 1.2% in December).
See full report of EUROSTAT: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/6581740/2-30012015-BP-EN.pdf/d776fbcc-89b2-4bae-beb0-ad30fa709244

Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, publishes1 for the first time today relevant information on
contingent liabilities and non-performing loans of government. These data have been provided by the EU Member
States in the context of the Enhanced Economic Governance package2 (the “six pack”).
The contingent liabilities published in this release include government guarantees, liabilities related to publicprivate
partnerships recorded off-balance sheet of government and liabilities of government controlled entities
classified outside general government (public corporations). The liabilities are called “contingent” in the sense that
they are by nature only potential and not actual liabilities. Non-performing loans could imply a potential loss for
government if these loans were not repaid. Thus, this new data collection represents a step towards further
transparency of public finances in the EU by giving a more comprehensive picture of EU Member States’ financial
positions3.
Due to their characteristics, data are country specific and closely linked to national particularities regarding the
economic, financial and legal structure of the country. Furthermore, data coverage is not complete for all the
Member States, as indicated in the attached country footnotes. For these reasons, data presented in this news
release should be interpreted with caution. In particular, for the liabilities of public corporations, the data
comparability is very limited due to the fact that for some Member States data reported is not exhaustive, in some
cases not including the liabilities of financial institutions and/or the liabilities of units controlled by local government.
Several other aspects should be taken into account when analysing the results of the liabilities of public
corporations. Firstly, the data reported for liabilities of public corporations are not consolidated, which means that
part of the liabilities of these units could be towards entities in the same company group. However, the liabilities
between units in the same group are not identifiable from the data reported. Secondly, the data collection only
refers to liabilities without balancing them with the assets. This aspect is very important in the case of financial
institutions which normally have both significant amounts of liabilities and assets. Additionally, for some of the
Member States, most of the liabilities reported by financial institutions concern deposits.
Source and see more: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/6616449/2-10022015-AP-EN.pdf/d75df6fe-100b-4ae7-a09e-00400edb183a

Seasonally adjusted GDP rose by 0.3% in the euro area1 (EA18) and by 0.4% in the EU281 during the fourth
quarter of 2014, compared with the previous quarter, according to flash estimates2 published by Eurostat, the
statistical office of the European Union. In the third quarter of 2014, GDP grew by 0.2% in the euro area and by
0.3% in the EU28.
Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, seasonally adjusted GDP rose by 0.9% in the euro area and
by 1.3% in the EU28 in the fourth quarter of 2014, after +0.8% and +1.3% respectively in the previous quarter.
During the fourth quarter of 2014, GDP in the United States increased by 0.7% compared with the previous
quarter (after +1.2% in the third quarter of 2014). Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, GDP grew
by 2.5% (after +2.7% in the previous quarter).
Over the whole year 20143, GDP rose by 0.9% in the euro area and by 1.4% in the EU28.
See more: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/6625198/2-13022015-AP-EN.pdf/6f7a18eb-0b2a-466b-b444-4d240889a723

In December 2014 compared with November 2014, seasonally adjusted production in the construction1 sector fell
by 0.8% in the euro area2 (EA18) and by 0.5% in the EU282, according to first estimates from Eurostat, the
statistical office of the European Union. In November 20143, production in construction fell by 0.5% in both
zones.
In December 2014 compared with December 20134, production in construction fell by 3.5% in the euro area and by
0.5% in the EU28.
Average production in construction for the year 2014, compared with 2013, increased by 2.0% in the euro area
and by 3.0% in the EU28.
See more: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/6639446/4-18022015-AP-EN.pdf/ed3e8778-2a1e-4f70-9234-252b6be80b73

The European Commission has approved a further 18 Rural Development Programmes (RDPs) aimed at improving the competitiveness of the EU farming sector, caring for the countryside and climate, and strengthening the economic and social fabric of rural communities in the period until 2020. These 18 programmes will see funding worth 14.3 billion EUR from the EU budget, which will be co-financed by further public funding at national/regional level and/or private funds. Coming after the 9 programmes cleared in December, today's adoptions bring the number of approved RDPs up to 27 (out of 118 programmes), meaning that programmes worth more than 35 billion EUR (roughly 36% of the budget) have now been approved.
For further information see:
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-15-4424_en.htm